


Breeding Cannibal Ducks

by TimeToTravel



Category: The Infernal Devices Series - Cassandra Clare, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Baby Jem and Will (14), Feeding Ducks Poultry Pie, Fluff and Crack, Gen, Pre-Clockwork Angel, parabatai bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:08:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24761302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimeToTravel/pseuds/TimeToTravel
Summary: A fic for @carstairstessa on Tumblr!!! Happy birthday Meg!In the year 1875, Will and Jem enact a scheme to go to test the cannibalistic tendencies of ducks during the middle of the night. A short story about bloodthirsty little beasts and the events that occurred that day.
Relationships: Jem Carstairs & Will Herondale
Kudos: 13





	Breeding Cannibal Ducks

**October 3, 1875**

Will Herondale and Jem Carstairs, _parabatai_ of two years, had a plan. A devious plan, but a plan nonetheless. Or rather, more of a scheme, really. This night was a rather special one, Will having finally convinced Jem to join him at Hyde Park to feed ducks leftover poultry pie after a week of requesting to do so. Of course to accomplish this task, they’d have to sneak past Charlotte Branwell, the head of the Institute. Getting past Charlotte, especially to 14 year old boys, seemed like an arduous task, though Will seemed to have it all planned out and eagerly told Jem of it. That conversation went something like:

_”We leave under the cover of night, they likely wouldn’t be awake to catch us then.”_

_“I’m still not certain that this is the best idea,” Jem replied, smiling at Will. “Think of what Charlotte and Henry would say if they caught us.”_

_“It’s for the sake of science, Jem!” Will had proclaimed proudly. “We must!”_

_Jem shrugged. “Well, I guess Henry won’t mind then.”_

_Th_ ough the two had their own rooms, both beside each other, Will had elected them to stay at Jem’s until night fell since, A. Will’s own room was a mess of books and papers scattered across the floor (and everywhere else), and B. it was closer to the Institute’s exit. Jem’s room was less cluttered than the aforementioned monstrosity of Will’s, with only a violin in the corner and the edge of the entrance adorned with the heights of Will and Jem throughout the past 2 years and the dates written beside it. At the moment, Jem was barely taller than Will, likely only having a fraction of an inch over him.

The two had sat discussing the final plan (”Remember, hide behind the pillars first and then calmly walk out of the Institute. People don’t question confidence.”) before Will perked up, an idea forming. He reached for Jem’s dagger on the side table, heading to the wall behind the four poster bed.

“Will, what are you-” Jem began before Will etched a line into the plaster.

He scribbled his name, turning to hand Jem the dagger, as though to tell him to etch his own name beside Will’s. There was a mischievous glint in Will’s eyes. “No one should ever forget that we, James Carstairs and William Herondale, were the ones to study the cannibalistic tendencies of mallards! We shall go down in history as the two brave enough to mark their presence at the London Institute under Charlotte Branwell’s scrutiny!”

Jem smiled at that, brightening the whole room. “Or as the idiots who marked up Clave property,” he claimed, though he had already begun etching his own name into the wall.

“We may be remembered as fools, but we shall be remembered as such together.”

“ _Whither thou goest_ ,” Jem recited, stepping back from the final product. Two names scrawled onto a bedroom wall, forever remaining, though Jem was unsure whether that had been a good idea. It didn’t matter regardless, what had been done had been done, and there wasn’t much that could change it now. At least, they would remain here, in memory, long after Jem was gone and Will had to live a life without his _parabatai_.

Jem looked over at Will smiling brightly at the work they’d done. Jem had never seen that smile. It was raw, genuine, the walls surrounding his heart fading for only a moment before being pulled back up. Jem had always known Will was hiding something from him, something dark, though he’d never asked about it. If there was something he could do with the little life he had left, Jem hoped it would be to make Will smile like that every day, to see the walls come down. At least, he hoped he would live long enough to see it. 

Jem sometimes worried that he had doomed Will to a life alone, that he had brought Will into Jem’s world of chaos and he wouldn’t be able to recover after Jem’s inevitable passing. He worried how Will would handle things when Jem finally left him, though he quickly banished those thoughts into a far corner of his mind. He knew for sure he’d always remain in Will’s heart, and in that way, Jem wouldn’t ever truly leave Will.

A voice brought him out of his thoughts.

“It’s time.” A smirk on his face, Will jumped from the bed and positioned himself by the door. Peeking his head into the corridor, Will looked from left to right to ensure Charlotte wouldn’t have caught them mid-adventure. He turned back, whispering, “All clear,” and snuck to the nearest column to hide behind. True to his word, Charlotte’s presence was nowhere to be found, so Jem snuck behind him, heading to the column opposite to the one where Will hid. He poked his head out of the corner and, upon seeing the empty path to the exit, gestured at Will to follow him towards it. The two walked slowly at first, frantically turning their heads in case anyone decided to show up, though they progressively picked up their pace until they were sprinting out of the Institute.

The two stopped at Hyde Park eventually, hands placed on their knees and laughing hysterically. Jem looked up to smile at Will.

“I can’t believe that worked out! So much for calm and confident though.”

Will looked back at him, grinning from ear to ear. “You wound me, James dearest, though I did tell you the plan would work!.”

Gathering their composure, the Will and Jem headed towards the ducks near the pond, Will grabbing the leftover pie he took after supper from his satchel. It was fine of course, everything going swimmingly. Until the ducks ate the pie. Will let out a high pitched screech, voice cracking a bit before claiming, “They ate it! They ate the pie! Cannibals I tell you!”

Jem gave WIll a pointed look though a smile was still plastered onto his face. “I honestly think they just eat whatever is thrown at them,” he said, though his phrase had no impact on Will’s look of terror, nor on his posted expressions that clearly intended to mean, “ _You see? I told you ducks were evil_.” The ducks had already pecked the last bite of food and were moving towards the two boys threateningly, eyes murderous for more pie,. This led to Will shrieking once more and fleeing for the Institute. Jem was almost certain that this was, at least in part, Will being overly dramatic, but regardless, he followed. The ducks were giving him glares as well. 

The two ran for the Institute, turning a corner and miraculously landing in Jem’s room. Upon having reached the room, Jem shut the door behind them, gasping for breath and laughing simultaneously. He had no idea how they had gotten away with this, or why they had run back in the first place, though the events that had transpired did make quite the story. This led to even more laughter on Jem’s part. 

“Why are you laughing?!” Will exclaimed, though Jem heard him laugh a bit as well, likely due to the ridiculous nature of what occurred. His hands were on his knees and was panting as well, though Jem would guess it was more from shock rather than over exertion. “I think we just bred a race of cannibal ducks!”

Jem took in a deep breath and burst into laughter once more before finally composing himself. “We fed them poultry pie, I hardly think that counts.”

“They ate it though, their own brethern,” Will reminisced, running a hand through his hair. “Bloodthirsty little beasts. Never trust a duck.”

Jem knew, somehow, that this day would be a special one. Perhaps because Will proved ducks to be cannibals, or because of their defiling of Clave property. Maybe it was special since it was the day he’d promised to bring Will’s walls down. Perhaps it was a mixture of all three. Regardless, there was one thing Jem was certain of, that this day in 1875 would forever live in his memory.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!! And once again, a happy birthday to Meg! You're amazing!


End file.
